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Reality Sinks In

Today is the first day of classes at Holy Cross, and my Facebook seems to be divided. My friends from the Classes of 2012 and below are writing statuses about their excitement about a new school year to begin. My friends from the Class of 2011, however, are singing a different tune in their statuses.

“I can’t believe I won’t be there!” “I moved into the Apartments a year ago. Time flew.” “I never said good-bye to Sis (one of the cashiers at Kimball).”

I won’t lie – it is kind of sad to sit here and remember all of the excitement at the beginning of last year. At that time, none of us knew what we would be doing after graduation (well, for the majority of us). Now reality is really beginning to settle in. Most of my friends have started their jobs, moved into their respective graduate schools, or shipped off to foreign countries for their teaching assistantships. I only have 20 days left in America before I ship off to England. It’s weird to be packing up my duffle rather than running around the Bookstore and running into friends in Hogan. It’s weird to not have participated in Kimball Week or Mass of the Holy Spirit this year. But, I had four years of all of those experiences (well, technically three, I guess). And as much as I love and miss Holy Cross, I’m really excited about the next few steps in my life.

Oh, and I’ll be visiting Holy Cross in less than two weeks, so maybe that’s helping my separation anxiety.
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One Month

In exactly one month, I’ll be flying over to London to begin my two year stay at Oxford. No, it hasn’t sunk in yet. Ironically enough, one of my best British friends, Yszi, is visiting at the moment.

Yszi and me

I guess her presence is tuning my ear for the British accents I’ll be hearing shortly. It’s been so much fun having her on this side of the pond – she can’t get over the size of our roads, how much sugar is in American Coke (nearly 3 times that of British Coke), and how awesome our customer service is.

Last night at dinner at one of our favorite restaurants (how’d you guess it’s an Irish pub?), somehow the conversation turned toward how moving me in Freshman year was such a hassle and how miserable I was on that day/night. To any incoming freshmen who read this blog – beware. It is one of the most tiring days (emotionally and physically) that you will experience. I remember that my emotions ranged from being absolutely thrilled and then quickly to absolutely horrified. As we inched closer toward Holy Cross, I suddenly realized that I didn’t know anyone at this school, that I was nearly two thousand miles away from home, and my parents and sister were leaving me that night. Since we arrived at Holy Cross late (as in, at 2:30 p.m. and we had to be at Mass for 4:00 p.m.), my room was barely set up – Mom had unpacked my clothes and Dad had set up my desk area, but we didn’t have a chance to make any Target runs. Meanwhile, Carrie’s side of the room looked amazing – she had even been to the bookstore a few times. I, however, didn’t even have my Holy Cross ID. Dad and Caitie went to Mass to save seats, and Mom and I headed off to Public Safety to pick up my ID. Then we hiked back up the Hill to catch the last half of Mass…and then Paul Covino said those words that I was dreading. “Parents, go home. Students, please process to the soccer field.” My parents quickly said good-bye to me since they had to make a mile to move my sister into Colgate. I inevitably burst into tears. That night, I hung out with Carrie and went to our Orientation activities with her, but I remember returning to the room and just feeling crushed. It was such an exhausting day.

Things started to get better automatically, though. The next day, I attended Orientation activities, and I figured out how to call for cabs and get myself to Target and the grocery store. I met more people through my Orientation activities, and Carrie and I had most of our meals together in those first few days. I also had my interview for the blogging position on that Wednesday, which was also the first day of classes. Things just started clicking, and I suddenly started feeling so much more relaxed. As each day progressed, I fell more in love with Holy Cross, and between the professors, my friends, my classes, and the general atmosphere, Holy Cross became my home.

Now let’s fast forward a few years, shall we? Specifically to Graduation Day, when I was crying because I didn’t want to leave Holy Cross. Quite the change from Freshman Move in Day 2007, isn’t it? So to the incoming Class of 2015  – August 27th might be the worst day of your life. But I can almost guarantee you that it gets better nearly instantaneously the next day. So hang in there, and remember to get there before 2:30 p.m.
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Once a Crusader, Always a Crusader

About two days ago, I received my huge course booklet from the English Faculty at Oxford. The first two terms of my first year are taught courses, and my third term involves a dissertation. Then in my second year, I’ll write another (i.e. bigger) dissertation. For the first two terms, I have two required courses – one is an introduction to studying Medieval Literature at the graduate level, and the other is on paleography and textual criticism. The general Medieval Literature course alternates between Old and Middle English works, so I’ll have a fair amount of exposure to both traditions. We’ll explore key themes like the medieval concept of orality and written works, authorship and what it means to revise a text, etc. We’ll explore literature ranging from the Exter Book Riddles to Bede to Ancrene Wisse. In my paleography course, we’ll learn how to identify specific English scribes based upon their handwriting. We’ll be able to tell in what year and where (approximately, at least) they’re writing based upon the fashions in their scripts. Most importantly, we’ll be able to look at manuscripts (either the originals or fascimilies) and transcribe the documents.

I get to choose my third course, and the options are overwhelming (in a good way!). For the first term (Michaelmas), I could choose Memories of Conversion in Old English and Old Norse, Middle English Arthurian Texts, Imagining the Polity in England 1377 to 1422, or Older Scots Literature. For the second term (Hilary), I could choose Early Middle English Devotional Writing for Women, Old Norse Literature, Heroic Poetry in Old Norse and Old English, or the Language of Middle English Literature. As I was reading through my options, I realized that I needed help in choosing. So, I asked Professor Kee for his recommendations. He gave me some great advice for my future career as a medievalist, and also reminded me that the best way to handle graduate school is to just follow my heart. So, I will be taking Memories of Conversion in Old English and Old Norse (this was what I wanted to write my senior thesis on before I found the Julian/Flannery topic) in the first term and the Language of Middle English Literature in the second term. Bring on the reading lists!
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A Year Ago Today…

A year ago, I returned from England and was preparing for my final year at Holy Cross.

Today, I am knee deep in my UK Visa application, transferring my doctor and dental records, and backing up all of my files while I wait for my new laptop to arrive. It’s amazing how fast a year goes by. One day, everyone is moving into the Senior Apartments (or a single in Healy) and proclaiming that Senior year is going to be the best year in college. The next day, it’s Graduation. It’s exciting to log into Facebook or to receive an e-mail and see what my friends are doing now. Carrie is packing and preparing to move to England (see you soon!). Margaret is moving into William and Mary for Law school today. Bill is almost finished with his internship in Philly and will be leaving for Turkey in a month. Colin leaves for France at the end of the month. Grant accepted a job in L.A. Sarah is working for a political think tank. Miriam moves to India in a few weeks. Frank is finished with his pre-law school courses in D.C., and heads off to Villanova law tomorrow. Jess has moved into her apartment in Philly and begins Vet School in a week. Tom is preparing to move to Germany at the end of the month. And I am watching reruns of Stephen Fry’s show QI to work on my British accent. Just kidding about the last one.

Well, maybe.

Although it’s sad that we’re not together, it’s still exciting to see all of my friends growing up. We’re buying cars, renting apartments, having interviews with prospective employers, and trying to be grown ups. Emphasis on the “trying” part of that sentence, since I still wear my Tinkerbell pajama pants.